The Ward
by BethyNettle
Summary: The Doctor and Rose land on a strange and seemingly unoccupied ship. But terrors lurk in the shadows, and sometimes in the walls.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

The garments scratched at Emmy's skin like sandpaper and she wanted nothing more than to scratch her arms and legs.

"Twenty minutes," Doctor Mora said, not looking at her, fastening a yellow band tightly around Emmy's wrist.

Emmy sniffed in acknowledgement and looked over her shoulder at Georgina. G was also wearing the scratchy blue outfit, a yellow band strapped on her arm. They smiled at each other but said nothing. They couldn't anyway. Emmy wasn't supposed to talk to Georgina. She looked back to Doctor Mora.

"How long now?"

The doctor looked irritated at her question.

"Just under twenty minutes, now lie back."

She pushed gently on Emmy's shoulders so she was lying on the bed she'd previously been perched at the end of. Mora then pulled open a draw, extracted a syringe and filled it with fluid from an airtight sac that hung on the wall. With each time Mora flicked the syringe, Emmy gripped Georgina's hand tighter.

"Now this will only hurt a bit," said Doctor Mora, positioning the needle on the inside of Emmy's elbow, finding the vein. Emmy squeezed her eyes tight as Doctor Mora injected her with the pale blue liquid.

"It's finished now, it's okay to open your eyes." It was the first time the doctor had spoken kindly to Emmy and there was a look of genuine sadness in her eyes. Emmy smiled and carefully opened her eyes again, the world blurry for a few moments.

"Ten minutes."

Emmy's feet were numb and she prodded then gently, feeling a tingling sensation dance over her toes. She liked that. She giggled – quietly, so as not to draw attention to herself. Doctor Mora had left two minutes beforehand and, though she didn't admit it to Georgina, she had started to feel a little lonely. She was sat in a wheelchair in the main hall with a few others, some of whom were also sitting. She curled her legs up to her chest and fiddled with her toes, enjoying not being able to feel anything. She was lucky; some of the patients had their legs strapped to their chairs, unable to move. _They're the crazy ones_ she thought, avoiding eye contact with them. The way they looked at her made her feel queasy sometimes, like they were staring right into her. Georgina was sitting on the floor next to Emmy, her short curls covering her face. _She's sad_ Emmy thought. She stroked the girl's hair back, but then snapped her hand away before anyone could see. She wasn't allowed to communicate with Georgina.

"Don't worry," she whispered almost silently, "it'll be all right."

Georgina must've heard her because she looked up at Emmy and smiled subtly.

"Five minutes."

She was numb almost all over now, but she couldn't move her hands to feel the tingling across her body. Every time she tried to move her hands, the effort was too exhausting and she soon gave up trying. Georgina was still standing, but seemed to have gone limp, her arms swinging gently by her sides, her posture slumped. Doctor Sanchez – the plump Hispanic doctor, who had always been kind to her – effortlessly lifted Emmy out of her chair and onto a table that stuck out of the wall. _A table without_ _legs_ Emmy thought, _how curious._ Above her head, the code 18A was printed in black on the wall.

Sanchez pressed a small green button to the side of her and the wall behind her head slid upwards. It was then she realised, _the table is a shelf of course._ From the hole now behind her head, Sanchez pulled out a thin plastic tube and attached it to the catheter already in Emmy's arm.

An electrical buzzer sounded, signalling the final minute.

"Not long now _mi querida_," he said, typing a code into the keypad to her right. She looked at Georgina, who was standing at the foot of the table. She started to cry silently, tears rolling down her cheeks like raindrops.

"Sshh," Emmy said, "we mustn't cry."

Sanchez looked at Emmy sympathetically. The buzzer sounded again and he gently pushed the table into the hole in the wall. As Emmy's torso disappeared into the glass tube embedded in the wall, she heard Sanchez say, "I see you in five minutes." But Emmy knew that, for him, it would be much, much longer. By the time the door to the tube closed at her feet with a soft click, Emmy's entire body was numb and motionless. There was a low hum, and then dark blue fluid began to crawl its way down the tube, slowly making its way from the entrance in the wall through the tube and into the catheter. She could only watch as the liquid entered her arm. It tingled slightly, but not in the way she liked. It was almost burning, but she couldn't cry out. She missed Georgina. She needed her here. Her eyelids began to droop and before long they had closed altogether and her thoughts merged and swam together, like soup in her head. There was another hum and the burning stopped. Everything stopped.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"You just had to go and insult the Emperor, didn't you?" Rose said as she hurriedly closed the TARDIS door, shutting out the angry mob that had chased them.

"That suit wasn't his best," the Doctor insisted, "that's all I said."

"You've missed out the part about his weight and bad breath!"

"I didn't say that!" he said indignantly.

Rose just raised her eyebrows at him.

"Okay, maybe I did," he admitted, as there was the sound of a hundred fists hitting the doors. "So shall we go?"

"Well I'm not staying out there!"

"All right then," he grinned, "Allons-y!" and he kicked a lever, while flicking and turning switches and dials. She rolled her eyes and skipped over to join him, before flopping down on the leather sofa to let him to all the work. He scowled jokingly at her laziness and she kicked him playfully in the shins.

It was several minutes before they landed. Several minutes of swaying violently in mid-air. He was just showing off and they both knew it. But the TARDIS did land and the Doctor punched the air dramatically.

"Come on then, where are we?" she laughed.

He flicked a switch and pulled the screen towards him. It flickered into life, displaying nothing. The screen was blank.

"Is it broken?" she asked.

He hit the side of the screen with his palm. It flickered again, but remained black.

"No," he said finally, "but if I'm right…" without finishing his sentence he strode over to the doors and opened one slightly, peering through, "I am right! Oh good, I love it when I'm right!"

"Why are you right? What's out there?"

The Doctor opened the door fully. Outside Rose could see… nothing. Blackness.

"We have landed haven't we?" she ran over to join him, "We're not just floating in space…again?"

Without answering her, he stepped out of the TARDIS and Rose was relieved to see that he didn't fall or float away, but was stood on a floor of some kind. She tentatively followed him, careful not to let the door shut, as the only light was the small amount radiating from within the TARDIS itself.

"Where are we? Can we turn any lights on?" Rose squinted into the darkness in search of something, anything. The Doctor pulled out the sonic screwdriver from his inside coat pocket and pointed it upwards. The blue light buzzed into the silent darkness and before she could say anything, Rose's eyes were blinded by bright lights.

When they had adjusted, she could see that they were in a well-illuminated corridor, with plain white walls and ceilings and a light wooden floor. At one end of the corridor was a door sealed shut with what looked like a card swipe mechanism and at the other was the symbol for a toilet.

"Three guesses what's in there," Rose nodded towards the door.

The Doctor smiled, but said, "I'm more interested in the locked door."

"Too bad we don't have a device that could unlock that machine," she joked.

The Doctor waved his sonic proudly and the two turned, strolled past the TARDIS and made their way to the door. The sonic unlocked the seal and they stepped through the door.

The room they stepped into was large and circular, lined with shelves and cupboards and glass cabinets. Every single one was empty, the Doctor had checked as Rose walked over to one of the several doors leading out, which was also sealed shut. After a few minutes they passed through this. They came to another corridor – larger this time – with many doors either side. Every door was sealed shut with the same swipe card mechanism. A quick look inside showed that each room behind these doors was identical. Each held a glass cabinet, a set of white wooden drawers and a bed. Well, Rose assumed it was a bed, it didn't look very comfortable. Apart from that, the rooms were bare, nothing in the drawers or cabinets. And all the while, the whole place had been silent, the only sound being their footsteps bouncing off the blank walls. Rose was starting to feel a little anxious, but the Doctor seemed curious if anything.

At the end of the door-lined corridor, the space opened into a long rectangular room. At the end at either side, two more doors were locked. But this room confused Rose; all along the walls, there were sets of small buttons and keypads paired together with a number painted above them. The Doctor bounded over to one labelled '12F' and ran a hand over the wall between the button and keypad.

"What is it? What's there?" Rose asked, her voice loud in the silence.

"Nothing," the Doctor replied, perplexed. He pointed his screwdriver at the wall and scanned. "Either these walls are concealing seriously deadlocked doors or there's literally nothing." There was a pause as Rose thought over the unusualness of the place they'd landed in. "Come on, let's see if we can't find out where we are," he said and headed off towards the door at the end, leading left. Rose followed obediently, not wanting to admit that every bone in her body wanted to leave this creepy place, whatever it was.

Wherever they went, they were always greeted with corridors, empty rooms and sealed doors. There were several more rectangular rooms with keypads that opened nothing and didn't respond to the sonic. Each room had numbers one to twenty painted on the walls, ten on each side. But each room corresponded to a different letter. The Doctor and Rose had found F at first and as they explored, they found B, C and J. They didn't seem to be in any sort of order, alphabetical or otherwise.

"Rose," the Doctor said eventually, making her jump, "Can you remember the way back to the TARDIS?"

"I'm not sure, I don't think so."

"Oh right…" he cleared his throat slightly, "because neither can I."

Rose's heart lurched in her chest, but she smiled and joined in his chuckling, all the while feeling like they were interrupting the silence somehow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Leon finished his tea in five gulps.

"Eight seconds!" Alanna shouted, "You've got to do better than that I'm afraid." She grinned at him, proud of her four-second record. She picked up his mug and their lunch plates and carried them into the kitchen are to wash up. Leon kicked off his shoes, put his feet up on the desk, picked up his book and continued reading. Alanna returned and looked disapprovingly at him, he shrugged and winked at her. She couldn't be angry with him, not really.

"Shouldn't your eyes be on the screens and not on the words of Charles Dickens, Mr Chanders?" she joked, logging in to her computer.

In front of the two, the wall was lined with screens; security feeds from various parts of the Ward. The feeds flicked from one camera view to another in full colour and sound – not that that was necessary in a place that was unnaturally empty.

"What's the time?" she asked, trying to make conversation; she hated the eeriness of the place.

Leon glanced at his watch.

"Six-fifty, ten minutes until I can finally get some sleep." He stretched his neck, exaggerating his fatigue. She nodded, agreeing, glancing up at the monitors. She stopped short, not blinking.

"Oh my God..." she managed. Leon didn't seem to hear her. "Leon… Look!" She grabbed his arm, still keeping her eyes fixed on screen five. Leon looked up from his book, and then dropped it to the floor. He couldn't believe his eyes; there in J Ward stood a man and a woman.

"Keep the feed locked on that room, don't lose them!" he shouted, shoving his shoes back on his feet, "I'll wake security. This is not happening!" His voice trailed away as he ran from the room, leaving Alanna furiously manipulating the cameras and their feeds, deadlocking all the door seals in J Ward.

"Who are you?" she whispered to the figures on the screen, "What do you want?"

Leon hurtled down the corridor and into the Security Bay. The first chamber he came to was 'S1' and he rapidly punched in the code into the keypad. He then moved to the next one and did the same again and again, until all twenty chambers were starting the deactivation process. He stood in the centre of the room, running his hands through his brown mess of hair, trying to steady his breathing. _You've trained for this,_ he thought, _keep calm, deep breaths._

It was just thirty seconds later that there was an almighty crashing sound and the room shook. Leon collapsed to the floor, unable to get up due to the sheer force of the movement. The rumbling noise grew louder and stronger and Leon covered his ears, squeezing his eyes tightly shut. Small cracks formed in the walls and near the chambers, electrical wires were exposed. Many of the keypads fizzled and died.

"No," he shouted, "No! No!" He crawled over to the wall, slamming his fist into a broken machine. Chambers one to sixteen were all damaged now, sparks flying out of the devices. Leon covered his head to avoid the leaping electrical flames.

And no sooner had it started, the rumbling and shaking stopped altogether. Without thinking, Leon ran to the remaining chambers and punched in the codes. 18 and 19 didn't respond. 17 and 20 continued the deactivation process and Leon paced frantically, just waiting for the security members to emerge from the chambers. Were the others dead? _If so, _he thought, _we may only have two members of security left…we need more for when we arrive…_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"We definitely took a right at the C room," Rose thought aloud, "or maybe it was left."

She looked at the Doctor for a response, but he was too busy scanning the walls with his sonic, occasionally pressing his ear against the white paint, concentrating intently.

Rose was about to speak again when she was interrupted by a crashing noise.

"Oh," the Doctor looked about, "What's that then?" And then he fell to the floor as the room began to shake. Rose planted her hands and feet firmly on the ground in a feeble attempt to steady herself, but fell sideways, crashing her shoulder into the wooden floor. The two of them managed to half-crawl towards each other, and Rose reached out to grab his arms, missing once or twice as the ground shook beneath her. She found the sleeve of his suit and gripped it tightly, as sparks spat out of the wall with short electrical hisses.

And then it stopped. Rose's breath was caught in her throat and she dared not move. She managed a quiet, "What the _hell_ was that?" as she cautiously stood up. The Doctor joined her, brushing off his suit, which had been covered in sprinkles of white paint that had flown off the walls as it had cracked. Great jagged scars had appeared in the ceiling and the wooden floor was no longer smooth and polished in certain areas, but splintered.

"I don't know," the Doctor ran his hands through his hair, loosing some more paint flecks, "Some sort of storm maybe? Solar flare?"

Rose hated it when he didn't know. It scared her a little; finding something the Doctor doesn't know is rarely good.

"Should we go back to the TARDIS? This place doesn't seem stable," she was referring to the rifts in the walls and ceiling.

"Yeah… if we can find the way. Oh, hang on," he whipped out his sonic screwdriver and held it aloft, buzzing. His face dropped and Rose couldn't tell whether he was scared or confused. "I can't find it," he looked at Rose, "The sonic can't pick up a signal. We're lost."

Rose almost fell to the floor again as she was reminded of the many corridors and rooms they'd passed through. No route could form in her mind; it all seemed to merge into one.

"Well… we'll just have to try and find our way back. Unless there's someone here who can help."

Just then, one of the two doors burst open and three men came running in, guns pointed straight at them. Instinctively, they raised their hands in the air.

"Hello. I'm the Doctor," said the Doctor, "and this is Rose. You must be…?"

"Get down!" one of the men yelled. He was a large man, dressed in black with a shaved head.

"Nice to meet you Get Down. Me and my friend here were just – "

"Get on your knees!" the other man shouted, moving in closer, his gun almost at the Doctor's chest now.

The Doctor rolled his eyes, "Oh, I hate guns. Can you stop pointing those things?" None of the men paid him any attention and the man in front of him shoved his shoulders, forcing him to the floor.

"Oi!" Rose stepped forward as if to interject but the second man dressed in black ran forward and did the same for her, sending a spasm of pain through her knees as she hit the floor. This man was also shaved and of a large build. _Like security guards_ Rose thought.

"Really, can you stop pointing that at me? There's no need," the Doctor said to the man before him. He ignored the request. However, the two slowly stepped back as the third and final man walked towards them. He was smaller than the other two, with dark skin and short brown hair.

"You say her name is Rose," he said to the Doctor, "Rose what? And what's your name please?" He was holding a pen over a clipboard ready to fill in what looked like a form of some kind.

"Rose Tyler," the Doctor replied, "and as I said earlier, I'm the Doctor."

"Which Doctor? I haven't seen you before."

The Doctor looked a little confused, "No… just the Doctor."

"Fine," the man sighed, "if you're going to be like that then we're going to have to take you both to the Captain's quarters."

"Captain? Are we on a ship?" The Doctor looked around. He was convinced they'd been in a building – a complicated, empty building, yes, but a building all the same.

"Stop messing around and stay still."

"Stay still?" Rose repeated, "Why?" It was then that the two security guards withdrew handcuffs. "Oh."

They'd been walking between the two burly men through countless corridors, rooms and passageways, led by the dark-skinned man.

"Say, how long until we get to the Captain, Mr… erm, what was your name again?" said the Doctor, bored of walking. It was the first time any of them had spoken since they left the J room.

"Chanders. Technician Leon Chanders. And not long now."

They turned a corner and Leon swiped his card that hung around his neck, opening a bright red door, which hurt Rose's eyes after being in such a white place for so long. Behind the door was a large space, with three cells at the opposite end. The Doctor rolled his eyes, knowing he and Rose would end up in them. And sure enough, they found themselves un-cuffed (with the Doctor's long coat removed and hung next the cell) and placed in the far left cell. The floor was soft to the touch, as were the two walls. Even the bars weren't as hard as Rose had expected.

Leon finished scribbling on his form, before saying, "The Captain will be here shortly," and leaving the way they had come in. They were left with the two bodyguards who stood either side of the door, thankfully with their guns back in their pouches.

"It's never long before we end up locked up," Rose whispered, smiling. The Doctor didn't seem to hear her; he was staring at a notice board on the wall intently. There were several pieces of paper stuck to it with magnets. One in the centre read:

_'Cells should only be used in case of emergency. All staff should contact the Captain about any disturbances. Thank you.'_

The door opened and a tall red haired woman entered. She wore a dark red jumpsuit with what looked like a sheriff's badge only larger pinned to her belt.

"And you must be the Captain. Hello, I'm the Doctor."

"If you are a Doctor then where is your identification and why aren't you in your designated chamber?" the woman looked at him incredulously. "Because," she said before he could reply, "you are _not_ in fact one of the Doctors and you and your friend are intruders. How did you get in and why are you here?" She was glaring at them and Rose could imagine steam coming out of her ears.

It didn't take long for the Doctor to tell the Captain their story and by the time he had finished a young woman with blonde dreadlocks had entered, obviously with some information for the Captain; she kept trying to speak but was hushed and waved away each time.

"If I _did_ believe your story – which I don't – I certainly wouldn't - "

The girl had finally had enough and stepped forward, "But Ma'am!" she interrupted, "They're telling the truth, I've checked the CCTV footage and they really did get here in the blue box." She handed the Captain several pieces of paper, one of which had a blown up image of the TARDIS and the others with the Doctor and Rose in various areas of the ship. The Captain studied them for a few moments, not wanting to admit she had been mistaken.

"Okay," she stated finally, "but this means that you didn't cause the disturbance. You didn't cause the storm?"

"We did not," the Doctor said, happy that there was a chance of being released at some point.

"So what are you a Doctor of then?"

"Oh, everything really." He smiled, showing off.

The Captain's hard exterior seemed to melt away a little as she sounded a little panicked, "Can you help us? Are you good with electrics and machinery?"

"Like I said, good at everything," he looked her in the eye, concerned, "Why what's wrong?"

"It happened in the storm," explained the Captain. She'd released them and led them to the Security bay. "We can't access the guards and most of the doctors' and patients' chambers are damaged as well.

"We're in a hospital then," the Doctor realised, as he scanned the walls – the locks had been un-deadlocked to allow maintenance.

"Of sorts. We're transferring some patients to the Yrren-5 Institute. They're all in these cryogenic chambers along with the doctors and these guards."

"How many? Patients and doctors," the Doctor flipped open a keypad to examine the frazzled wires inside.

"Two hundred patients and approximately one hundred and fifty members of staff. Most of those were damaged in the storm. We think… I mean, it's possible that…"

"That some are so damaged, that the people inside are stuck, or dead," the Doctor finished for her. She nodded quickly and walked away.

Rose walked to the other side of the room and joined the girl with dreadlocks – whose name was Alanna.

"Why is everyone in cryogenics? Surely it would be easier to just have a room."

Alanna looked at her bemusedly, "This is a long journey. To provide enough food and water as well as medicines for everyone would be difficult."

"Why, how long is it?"

"Two years," replied Alanna, "We've only been going six months."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Emmy's head was groggy and her face felt heavy. She managed to open her eyes a little. She was still lying in the tube. _Am I there? _She thought, _Have we arrived?_ She waited patiently; knowing the technicians had would have a lot of work to do. They'd come to her eventually. She must wait her turn. That was what Doctor Mora had told her.

It must be my turn by now. She was bored of just lying there; it felt like hours. She felt sticky and sweaty where her back touched the material of the bed. She glanced around at the glass that encased her and moved her hand up to stroke it. And then she noticed. The small plastic tube had been torn out of its hole and the fluid was seeping down into the bed, soaking her back. She was afraid now. Was this meant to happen? This doesn't seem right. She shuffled down as much as she could and knocked on the door by her feet with he heel. She tried to call out but her throat was dry. She banged harder, sparks of pain shooting through her calves. Breathe, breathe, breathe. She gave one hard kick and felt the glass crack. A warm wetness trickled down her heels, but she ignored the pain and kicked as hard as she could over and over. Finally, the small door gave way completely, leaving a jagged hole. Emmy shuffled down slowly. As she got to the end, she turned onto her stomach and pushed herself out. She fell onto the hard floor, ripping her trousers on the splintered wood. _Splintered wood? It was smooth_. She stood up and looked around. _Where is everyone?_

"Sanchez?" her voice was fine now. Doctor Mora had told her the effects of the medicine clear after just a few minutes. "Doctor Mora?" No one replied.

"G?" she said this quietly, in case the doctors were listening. "G are you here?" There was no reply from Georgina either. She was scared now, curling her fingers into fists. It was so quiet the only sound was that of her heart pounding in her chest as though trying to beat its way out. Her feet hurt; she was standing on the remnants of the door she'd broken, shattered glass and thin white plaster. The rest of the room seemed to be broken as well. She ran her finger along a jagged scar in the wall opposite. She didn't like the feel of the broken plaster and paint so withdrew her hand and wiped it on her top. She walked over to the right-hand door at the end, which stood open and the card swipe device lay blackened on the floor. _Sanchez will know what to do. I'll find G and we'll look for him together._

She tentatively made her way down the unfamiliar corridor, leaving small bloodstains behind her where her heel bled into the wood. All the while she called out for Georgina, for Sanchez and Doctor Mora.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

After collecting the Doctor's coat from the cells, he, Rose, Alanna and one of the security guards (named Joseph) were gathered in the control room. The Captain and the second guard (Xander) had decided to use the Doctor's methods to try and fix the machines in the security bay and try to wake any remaining doctors and staff.

Alanna had brewed tea for everyone, much to the Doctor's delight and he and Leon were rifling through the footage during the storm – and there was a lot of it. Turns out the hospital (or 'The Ward', as the staff called it) was a huge ambulance ship with the sole purpose of transporting two hundred patients to a highly advanced institute on Yrren-5. There were at least five security cameras in every room.

"What sort of patients?" Rose had asked Leon.

"The mentals," he'd whispered back so as not to be heard. He'd winked at her and sauntered off to look through the footage.

Later, the Captain returned with Xander. They had managed to awaken just one more security guard and two doctors. Their facial expressions told everyone what they needed to know: _The others are trapped. The others could be dead._

After a brief break down of the condition of the chambers, the doctors introduced themselves as Doctor Evelyn Mora and Doctor Michael Hope. The guard was still drowsy from the chamber and so didn't talk much – he just sat and looked, blankly. He made Rose feel anxious and she turned to carry on talking with Alanna.

"Captain!" Leon's shout made everyone jump but the Doctor, whose eyes were fixed on the same screen. The Captain rushed over.

"What is it? What's happened?" Rose had leaped over to the Doctor's side. On a screen to the right, the image showed a young girl (around seventeen or eighteen, Rose guessed) sliding out of a smashed hole in the wall. She fell to the floor and wandered around the ward, muttering to herself. She called out, but her voice was so muffled over the damaged speakers, no one could tell what she was saying.

"That's Emmy Walker," said Doctor Mora, "she's one of my patients. Come on, let's get down there," she gestured to Xander and made to run out of the room. The Captain grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"You can't just run out there! If she's woken up, then how many more will? We won't have enough staff to control the situation. Especially if J or D patients become active…" he voice trailed off as she gave a meaningful look to the doctors.

"What's so bad about that?" Rose said, annoyed at the unwillingness to help the girl, "We should be seeing if she's all right; she could be hurt!"

"D and J wards…" the Doctor thought aloud, "the dangerous patients, am I right? I did some reading when you locked us up."

The Captain nodded, but didn't say anything.

Exasperated, Rose looked around, "So nobody is going to see if she's okay?" she gestured to the screen. The girl was now leaving the ward, limping slightly.

"Rose is right," the Doctor said, "We need to bring her to your care. You're her doctor and she needs help. If you don't go, I will." He stared challengingly at the Captain, who protested for a moment, then sighed.

"As you wish, but take Joseph with you," she gestured to the silent guard, "Don't worry, Emmy is from A ward, completely harmless."

"Except to herself…" Rose heard Doctor Mora mutter, but nobody else seemed to be listening.

After being given a map and a communication device, the Doctor and Joseph had left the surveillance room in search of Emmy. Much to Rose's irritation, he told her to stay and help look out for any more patients. Then he'd smiled quickly at her before running down the corridor, followed by a slightly slow security guard.

"What made you want to come here?" Rose asked Alanna, "I mean, _two years_… four there and back. Why spend four years on a hospital ship? Surely you'd miss home?" That seemed to upset Alanna a little bit, "I haven't really got a home. Grew up with several foster families then studied medicine – that led me here. Where else would I go?" The girl looked like she was about to cry. Rose put a comforting arm round her shoulders.

"You've got some nice eye candy though," she grinned and nodded towards Leon, who was engrossed in the surveillance feeds.

Alanna laughed, "Oh God, don't get me started. He has no idea."

"You like him then?"

"Since I met him at Syct University. We were on the course. I've never looked at anyone else since."

"You haven't told him?"

"We're spending four years on a ship together. What if he didn't like me back?"

Rose shrugged. She had a point.

"Where are you from then, Rose?"

"London," she felt no need to lie to Alanna.

"Where's that then? Is that on Halton?"

"No, it's on Earth!" Rose laughed.

Alanna's eyes widened, "You're kidding! Proper Earth? I haven't met someone from there before. You lot don't normally come as far out as Yrren-3. Is it as glorious as the stories say, the Home Planet?" her face was excited, hungry for details.

Rose couldn't help but laugh, "It's all right, yeah!"

"We've got more patient deactivations – One in D and one in F!" Leon's cry made them both jump, "And I think I've found something… Just before the storm… There was this." He brought up a video link to the largest screen and tapped a command into the keyboard. Everyone on the room watched in awe and horror as the video played out. No one spoke a word.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

It was difficult to walk with a sense of vague purpose when many doors stood locked in Emmy's way. Occasionally, she could push or pull hard enough to force the electrical latch off the frame, but she spent a lot of the time turning round and going the next door, then the next, then the next. Once or twice, she could have sworn she heard something on the other side of the wood, scuffling.

"Sanchez?" she would call, knocking. But the noises would stop and she scolded herself silently for it, knowing it was just her mind playing tricks on her in the complete silence.

The bleeding from her foot had almost stopped now, but the pain was still there, pounding through her calf with every step. She didn't like that feeling and bit her lip so as not to cry out. _We mustn't cry_ she'd told Georgina, so she wouldn't cry. She'd do anything for G. The two had been friends for as long as Emmy could remember, but they hadn't been allowed to talk much recently; Doctor Mora thought G was a bad influence.

She'd been walking for around fifteen minutes – but it was hard to tell – and her legs were tiring. How long had she been in the chamber, unmoving? Doctor Mora had told her that she'd been extremely tired once the two years were up and the medicine would have a few minor side effects, like exhaustion and aching. _At least I wasn't in D ward… they got the strong stuff_ she thought.

She decided to rest a while in one of the storerooms. The floor was littered with debris and shattered glass from the cabinets. Breathing slowly, she cleared a small area and sat and leant against a ceiling high cupboard. Before she knew it, her eyes were drooping and she soon fell asleep, giving in to fatigue.

She awoke suddenly to fast footsteps coming towards the room she was in. She stood up quickly, panicked. She searched the room for something with which to defend herself. Nothing. The room was emptied. _Except for the glass_ a small voice said in her head. She hadn't heard that voice for a while and it startled her. With every second the footsteps grew louder and louder and her eyes flicked between the door and the shards of clear glass on the floor. Just as the footsteps came right behind the door she lunged forward, grabbed one of the larger shards and swung to face the enemy, backing towards the wall. Debris crunched under her feet and her cut reopened. She could feel blood seeping out onto the floor. The door swung open.

Without thinking, Emmy lunged forward, slashing at the intruder, no… _intruders, _with her weapon. Before she could do anything the glass had been knocked out of her hands and she was on her knees with her hands behind her back. Terrified, she began to scream. It hurt her throat and her ears, but it was the only thing left to do. She screamed Georgina's name, praying that her friend, or anyone, would run in to rescue her. Her mind blinded with panic and her whole body was throbbing with pain and exhaustion. _Help me, _she thought, _someone._

And then someone had a comforting hand on each of her shoulders and the grip on her arms was released. She opened her eyes and deep brown ones gazed back into hers. A man… _not Sanchez. _He smiled at her, a warm smile.

"Hello," he said, his voice swimming into her mind, calming.

She looked at him and decided she liked the look of him. He wasn't threatening. She reached a hand out and let a finger trace his cheek. On his skin she felt trust and kindness, and something else… something hidden, but it didn't scare her.

"What's your name?" he said, though Emmy saw in his eyes that he already knew.

"Emmy Walker," she managed to whisper, hoarsely.

"Hello Emmy, I'm the Doctor. And behind you is Joseph. He didn't mean to hurt you. Are you all right?" he looked genuinely concerned and Emmy was reminded of Sanchez. She thought about the question. She wasn't all right, she realised; she needed her friend.

"I can't find Georgina," she looked down at the floor, ashamed to talk about Georgina in front of the staff, but she needed G with her. "Can you help me find my friend?"

"Of course we can," the man grinned, he was telling the truth.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Rose's impatience was growing and she was tiring of watching the Doctor and Joseph and one screen and Emmy on another. The girl had fallen asleep in one of the medical storerooms and although Leon was giving the Doctor directions over the communications device, it was taking a while; the Ward was enormous and they had to wait a few seconds at each door for Joseph to swipe his identification pass over the locks. All the time Rose couldn't helping thinking, _he doesn't know, he needs to see the cause. He will understand._

"Oh, Christ!" Leon exclaimed, "The deactivated patient in D is out – smashed through the door like Emmy."

"What's his code?" Alanna jumped up, suddenly professional, and tapped the keys of her computer furiously.

"D1, who is that?"

"Hang on," Alanna typed the code into the search bar, "Patient is… Harry Aldham. Doctor Mora, Doctor Hope, do you know them?"

Both doctors shook their heads, "But if he's in D, then we need to warn the Doctor and Joseph," said Doctor Hope, taking the communicator from Leon and talking into it.

"What's wrong with D ward?" Rose whispered to Alanna, watching the screen.

"D is where the dangerous patients are. Away from the other wards and closer to the security bay in case there was any trouble at take off or landing. Just be lucky no one in J is awake. Those patients prefer to kill first, think later," Alanna covered her mouth, shocked at what she'd just said, and looked round to make sure nobody had heard her. They hadn't and Rose smiled reassuringly. But inside her stomach was turning. If someone who isn't a danger could wander almost freely around the Ward, then what could someone dangerous do?

"We need someone down there," said the Captain, "Xander, Doctor Hope, take these," she retrieved two belts from a drawer and handed them to the two. Doctor Hope shifted uncomfortably. "Is there a problem Doctor Hope?"

His eyes averted her gaze, "It's just I, erm… trained and practised with B and C patients. I'm not qualified to deal with this situation."

The Captain glared at him for a moment, before Doctor Mora stepped in, "We need all the help we can get. I'll go."

Mora was just reaching for the belt, when the Captain pulled it away, "No. Doctor Hope is right. Neither of you are qualified for this. I simply cannot put you in that position. If anyone has to go with Xander, it will be me."

Rose watched as they argued over who should or shouldn't go and rolled her eyes. She grabbed the belt from the Captain and attached it round her waist as the others watched her.

"I'm going," she stated, clipping the belt at the front, "You can't stop me, I don't work here and, like Doctor Mora said, you need all the help you can get. Any problems you can take it up with me later, all right?" No one replied and Rose smiles proudly.

"Be careful. Respect our hospital and don't do anything stupid," said the Captain, not unkindly, "Now listen. This pocket here," she gestured to Rose's belt, "contains Enexon injections, just in case the patient turns on you – it'll send him to sleep in under a minute. Here is the communicator – you don't need to detach it. And here is an alarm. Just hit that and we can see your distress signal here."

"Captain, we need to get a move on, he's managed to get out of the D ward!" Leon called from the control panel. Rose and Xander needed no further prompt and left the room immediately. Before the door closed behind them, Rose smiled at Alanna who returned it, if a little anxiously.

Rose and Xander headed left down the corridor where the Doctor has turned right and she bit her lip in worry. Xander took the lead, knowing his way to D ward 'like the back of his hand' he told Rose. He explained that all the security guards had to know their way off by heart to wards D and J, just in case there was trouble. In the same way, each of the Doctors had to know the way to their designated wards. Rose found it hard to pay attention. Why had she volunteered for this? She decided she did this to protect the Doctor, so she held back her fear and walked upright, head held high, ready for whatever she would encounter when she and Xander came across Harry Aldham.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Emmy walked a few paces behind the Doctor and Joseph. The Doctor had torn his tie in two and wrapped the two halves around the cuts on her hands, but the fabric was coarse on her skin. Whenever the Doctor wasn't talking to her, she fiddled with the material into a more comfortable position, but soon tired of this and began to stroke her fingers along the wall as she walked. The men kept trying to talk to her, but as much as she liked the tall, scruffy-haired man, the bodyguard unnerved her and she pretended as though she couldn't hear him.

"So which ward was Georgina in? We could ask one of the doctors to wake her up for you?"

Emmy shrugged, not knowing the answer. She felt a small tug inside, remembering how much she missed her friend and hoped it wouldn't be too long before they were reunited. She twirled a strand of hair in her fingers, wishing she had Georgina's curls.

It was not long after when Joseph suddenly stopped and looked around him, up and down the corridor.

"Something wrong?" the Doctor followed Joseph's gaze.

"No, it's just," Joseph paused, rubbing his forehead, "I can't seem to remember the way back. But… Okay, you two wait here. I'll down here and see if we are where I think we are." He started to walk away when he realised something and turned back, "Hang on, if we can't get back to each other, how will we get in contact." He looked at his singular coms unit.

"Ahh, don't worry," the Doctor took his sonic out of his pocket, "I've got my screwdriver." He gave a cheeky smile in response to Joseph's confused expression. The man nodded slightly and headed up the corridor, round the corner and out of sight.

The Doctor sat down on the floor, his back against the wall. Emmy stayed standing, fingers hovering over a chip in the paint, her eyes fixed on the end of the hallway.

"You all right?" the Doctor asked, smiling.

She nodded, "I don't like it."

"What?"

"Joseph's feeling. It's scratchy," she whispered, as if the security guard could still hear her.

The Doctor laughed slightly, "He does seem a little tough doesn't he?"

Emmy's lips twitched and the Doctor took that to be a smile. She slowly slid down a smooth part of the wall opposite him and let her toes explore the wood beneath her feet.

It was a short while before the Doctor began to feel a little restless – he wasn't usually the one to sit around and do nothing. He pulled a watch out of his inner coat pocket, glanced at the face and placed it back again, exhaling exaggeratedly.

"So what does your friend look like?" he asked, breaking the silence.

Emmy looked up, looking happy to be asked, the Doctor thought.

"She's beautiful. I get jealous sometimes. She has curls in her hair, but it's short, so the feel of it is not very knotty. Knots can be quite painful when I touch them."

"And when did you last see her? What was she wearing?"

"It was when I went into the wall. She's wearing the same as me." She gestured to her blue top and trousers and the band round her wrist.

"So, she's on the same ward as you were then?"

Emmy thought for a second before nodding, "Yes, I suppose she must be." _Why did I leave her? _She thought, cursing herself. _If only I'd given time for the drugs to wear off before I left the ward._

"Shall we go and find her then?" Emmy got up and moved as if to head to the ward.

"Do you know the way then?" said the Doctor, getting up to stop her running away down the hall, "'Cause I don't."

She looked like she was about to protest, but then resigned and sat back by the wall.

The silence grew over the pair again as they sat and waited for Joseph to return. The Doctor pulled out his watch again and glanced at the time. His eyes widened a little.

"What's wrong?" Emmy asked. She didn't like his face confused, the creases in his skin made dark shadows.

"Joseph has been gone for two hours," the sense of worry in his voice sent shivers across her arms, but she knew he was trying to hide it. She said nothing.

The Doctor retrieved his sonic screwdriver from his pocket and buzzed the air. Emmy covered her ears.

"Sorry," the Doctor said and pressed a button, muting the device. But his face was still twisted with concern.

"His communicator's off. We should find him, I've got a bad feeling about this."

Emmy didn't like the idea of wandering aimlessly down the winding corridors, but nodded anyway; she didn't want to make the Doctor unhappy.

She kept close to him as they made their way down the many hallways of the ship, stopping occasionally as the Doctor scanned the air with his sonic, its blue light pulsing gently. Emmy liked the way it glowed. It was a few minutes before they came to a closed door, which made the Doctor's screwdriver blink furiously and the flashing hurt Emmy's eyes so she looked away. The Doctor put his ear to the door.

"I think he's in here, but…" he looked at the display on his device, frowning, "I'm not sure. Emmy, wait here." Her eyes widened, obviously scared at being left alone here, "I'm coming back, I promise," he held her shoulders and looked into her eyes, smiling comfortingly. How could she not believe him? Mustering up some courage, she nodded and he buzzed open the door, entering the room beyond.

The room was darker than the corridor and the Doctor had to squint. His sonic was still flashing and wouldn't respond when he pointed it upwards towards the light. He hit it against his hand and tried again. This time the lights came on so bright he covered his eyes with his arm, shielding himself from the blinding whiteness. The lights buzzed, flickered and went out again, burying him in darkness again. There was a ringing in his ear from the utter silence.

"Joseph?" he called out. He was greeted with silence. _It was worth a try._ He hit the sonic again and pointed it at the ceiling once more. It was a few seconds, but after a while the lights flicked on again, not as bright this time, though after a moment, the Doctor almost wished it were dark again.

"Oh Joe." He whispered.

There, in the centre of the large empty supply room, was Joe. He was sprawled across a patient bed, a stream of blooding trickling from his eyes down onto the bed, pooling in the fabric adding to the large stain already there. A gash on the back of his head revealed a shattered skull coated in more red liquid. The Doctor sighed and ran a hand through his hair, squatting slightly, wondering what to do.

Emmy stood obediently by the door, but the silence was edging around her and she could have sworn she heard creaking and groaning and the sounds grated at the back of her head. Then she heard the Doctor say something, but it was too quiet for her to understand. _Did he say it was okay to come in?_ Looking over her shoulder back into the corridor to check nothing was following her, she stepped through the door. She turned to face the room and red was everywhere. The crimson mess clouded her vision and she thrashed to clear it, screaming at the metallic taste in her mouth, then she saw the body, the head. She shrieked and clawed at her head, falling backwards, splashing in the scarlet that was filling the room, drowning her. She choked and cried out for Georgina, but the hot red liquid had engulfed her now and she couldn't breathe. _This is it_ she thought, trying so hard to pull herself out, but she was weak and couldn't breathe. It wasn't long before black crawled across her sight and she knew that it wasn't long now.

Then something was clawing at her shoulders, talons digging into the flesh. She opened her eyes wide in pain, but the red was gone, replaced by a soft brown, which swam in her vision. There was a noise too – like syrup – but that was unclear too. She was confused and weak and wanted Georgina more than anything. Her sight began to settle and the brown grew smaller and circular, resting in a blurry shape – a face. _I know that face_. And there he was. She knew what he was saying now. It was her name, coaxing her back into reality. And then she was back in the corridor, slumped against a soft brown fabric, looking up at the Doctor, whose face, although covered in shadows and lines of distress, was the most comfort she could know and she closed her eyes, letting her weakness taking over, knowing he'd be there when she woke up.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Rose had to walk at twice her normal speed to keep up with Xander's large strides. Occasionally he'd stop to look at his watch, which was also a compass, Rose noticed. Every time she thought she heard a creak or a door slam in the distance, she remembered the video footage Leon had shown them, but she shook her head and carried on. _It's just my imagination_. Alanna's voice crackled over Xander's communicator.

"Are you two there? Is everything all right?" her voice altered in volume and Rose realised the reception wasn't strong.

"Fine," Xander said into the speaker, "Why?" There were a few seconds of static noise, before Alanna could be heard again. She was saying something about CCTV going down but it was hard to distinguish anything else and Alanna soon gave up – _or there's no signal_ Rose thought, shuddering at the thought of being isolated down here, even if she was with Xander. He didn't really talk much and it made Rose feel a bit uneasy. _You've been in worse places than this_ she thought to herself again and again, repeating it in her mind as if it would make her feel better. She couldn't convince herself, so bit back her fear, wanting to be brave. The Doctor would want her to be brave.

The walk seemed to last forever though Rose wouldn't be surprised if it had only been ten minutes or so. The concept of time was hard to grasp in this place. There was a rumbling in the distance and the two of them stopped, glancing around. Then a second storm hit and the force hurled Rose to the ground and Xander head first into the wall. The sheer power of the storm made Rose feel like her head was full of static. Her arm smashed into the wall and she cradled it as best she could. She could hear Xander's cries of pain but he was just a blur in her vision.

And then it stopped, so suddenly Rose had to have a few seconds to regain her thoughts. Shaken and exhausted, she propped herself against the wall, still holding her upper arm in support, wincing at the sharp pain in her shoulder. She looked down at her belt and found a pouch labelled with a cross and pulled out a first aid kit around the size of her hand, she tried to open it with her left hand but struggled. Xander opened it for her, ripping open a small plastic package labelled 'sling' and folds of previously compressed fabric fell out. Xander fixed her right arm up in the sling before using a wipe to sterilise the gash that had appeared on his forehead during the storm.

"Thanks," Rose said and Xander nodded, attaching what looked like a plaster on to his cut, which changed to match the colour of his skin before disappearing completely, yet still covering the cut.

"You all right?" he asked, helping her up and checking her for any injuries other than her arm.

"Yep," Rose lied, trying to ignore the pain in her arm, though it was subsiding a little since putting on the sling. Without a reply, Xander turned and continued walking down the corridor, seemingly unperturbed by the previous events. Avoiding the fresh cracks in the floor, Rose followed, making sure not to touch any of the wires poking through the now damaged walls.

The further they walked, the faster Xander's pace became and before long Rose found herself almost jogging to keep up.

"Oi mate!" she panted, "Fancy slowing down a bit?" But Xander seemed not to hear her. She sprinted awkwardly, trying not to jolt her arm too much, to come level to him. His eyes were looking dead ahead. "Hey Xander, we're not all athletically trained, can we slow it down?" she was almost shouting at him, but he only ran faster. Rose grabbed his arm and before she could stop him he grabbed both her shoulders and shoved her into the wall, holding her there, ignoring her cries of pain. His grip sent strikes of pain through her shoulder and Rose thought she might pass out. His eyes were staring into hers and Rose's stomach lurched. They were black. All black. Not even a trace of white or an iris. She struggled violently, forcing herself to ignore the hurting in her arm. Her screams seemed to be going nowhere in the empty corridor, but just a few seconds later Xander reeled backwards throwing his hands to his head as if in intense pain. Rose didn't falter. She grabbed and pulled the door pass from Xander's neck and ran as fast as she could down the hallway and through the first door she came to, not stopping for anything.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

When she had opened her eyes at last, Emmy was surprised to find she was wrapped in some form of blanket, but upon looking down, she discovered it was the Doctor's long brown coat that enveloped her. She was grateful for the warmth it provided and enjoyed the feel of the soft lining on her skin. It's owner was stood a few metres away, quietly scanning various parts of the walls with his glowing device. He noticed she was awake and smiled.

"Come on," he said, "let's get you back to Doctor Mora."

Emmy rose slowly to her feet, unsure if her legs were stable. They seemed steady so she and the Doctor carefully made their way across the splintered wooden floor, both of them knowing that neither knew the way, but saying nothing, not wanting to face the horrible truth that they were hopelessly lost.

Several corridors of silence later, footsteps could be heard. Emmy glanced at the Doctor who had stopped and was looking around, worried. _He can he them too_ Emmy was relieved to see, but then realised the sounds were getting louder and louder, coming towards them. Emmy felt her heart pound in her chest, her rib cage rattling beneath the coat. She stepped closer to the Doctor, feeling more and more scared with every step taken from the runner. _There are crazies in here,_ she thought, _I don't want to see another crazy, not now._ Then there was a flash of yellow and whoever it was crashed into the Doctor, bowling him over. Emmy stepped out of the way just in time but the person -a woman- was on top of him now. Part of Emmy's brain screamed at her to run, but she couldn't, she was frozen to the spot. But then -

"Boy am I glad to see you!" the woman exclaimed, her bright hair hurting Emmy's eyes a little so she had to squint.

"Rose!" the Doctor exclaimed, "What happened? What happened to your arm?" The two of them were standing now and the Doctor was examining a sling supporting the blonde's arm. Emmy looked on in silence, unsure of whether she should still be scared, keeping her mind active in case she needed to sprint.

The woman was talking so fast about a video then a security guard and the second storm that Emmy couldn't keep up and the words folded into a string of nonsense that swirled in the air like a swarm, buzzing in her ears. She flinched away from the insect-like noise and this seemed to catch the Doctor's attention because he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder again. The swarm stopped and Emmy could think clearly again. The Doctor introduced the other girl as Rose, his friend who he travelled with. Emmy didn't like the way Rose was looking at her but she smiled briefly to be polite, wishing G was there to ease her nerves. Georgina was always the more confident of the two of them. Thinking of Georgina scared her now. This place was so dangerous and all she wanted was to be with her one and only friend, safe in their new home, but she was alone in the Ward and who knew how long until they got to Yrren-5. She could feel herself hyperventilating and her legs gave way beneath her. _Maybe you should sleep_, a voice in her head whispered. This voice was new and Emmy didn't know whether to trust it, but as she became weaker, the voice seemed more soothing and she finally gave in to the call of sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Back in the control room, Alanna, Leon and the Captain were watching the video again, trying to work out what it could possibly be. The external camera had only caught a few seconds of video before the signal was cut off. It showed a large grey cloud-like shape which seemed to be opaque yet transparent at the same time. White light flashed spasmodically at it's centre, _like some kind of lightning_ Alanna thought. It moved smoothly along the exterior of the ship, occasionally splitting off as smaller sections explored nuts and bolts and joins, but they quickly returned to the main cloud. Then it stopped, shifted slightly and slammed into the hull, sparks flying from the centre of it and across the ship in intricate dances of electricity. The footage became unclear and fuzzy but just before it cut off completely, the cloud could be seen absorbing into the metalwork and disappearing without a trace.

Each time the video stopped, Leon rewound, sometimes playing the footage in slow motion or zoomed in but nothing seemed to make sense any more than before.

"Maybe it's just an electrical storm? They're quite common around here." Alanna suggested after several minutes.

"Or an alien," Leon joked.

The Captain ignored his comment. "It can't be. Look at the way it moves around the hull," she pointed at the screen, "this thing is smart. Maybe not alive, but _smart_. Not a storm. If only we could see where it went."

"Well," Alanna said, "oh never mind." Her voice trailed off.

"What?"

"Oh nothing it's just... well you can see it melt away into the ship, right?"

"Right?"

"So it's possible that it's... you know... inside."

There was a stunned silence as Alanna's words sank in.

"We need everyone back here now," the Captain declared, leaving the room to find the two doctors, who were still trying to get in contact with the others.

Leon turned back to the screen and started flicking through the footage again. Alanna chewed her lip in thought.

"Do we have any other angles from the outside? Or any video from inside the ship where the... whatever it is entered?"

"This is all we've got from the outside, one sec." He opened another feed on a second screen, clicking through various cameras. "This should get it," he said finally, enlarging the video.

There was nothing for a few seconds then faint wisps of grey smoke filtered through the walls and up through the floor, almost filling the corridor. It shifted and flashed then shrank down smaller and smaller until it was around the size of a man. It shifted again and suddenly it _was_ a man – it was still a cloud but the forms of arms, legs and a head were clearly visible. The flashes of light shifted upwards and seemed to form a small ball in the chest – _a heart?_ The head turned either way before the shadowy figure walked slowly but surely down the corridor and into the room at the end.

"Follow it!" Alanna shouted and the two set quickly typing into the keyboards pulling up unbroken camera feeds.

"Captain!" Leon shouted, not looking away from the display.

The Captain ran in followed by Doctor Mora and Doctor Hope and, stunned, they all stared at what was being shown to them, half listening to Alanna's explanation.

It was an agonising length of time before they found the figure in D ward footage. It stopped in the centre of the room and stood still for a long while. Then it fizzled into nothing, disappearing completely from view.

"Well that's no he-" the Captain started.

"No, wait," said Leon.

Then sure enough, something happened. The section of wall below D1 split and broken plaster and glass fell to the floor. Harry Aldham emerged from his tube, wild eyed and twitching then headed for the exit, but as he passed through where the smoke man had previously been, he froze and shook on the spot, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. Then it stopped and he walked away and out of the room.

"But that's... what _is_ that?" asked Doctor Mora, transfixed on the clip being replayed.

"I don't know," admitted Leon, "but look closer. It's hard to tell because the 'storm' seriously damaged the video quality, but..." he paused the video mid play and zoomed right in on Harry's face.

"Oh my God," was all Doctor Mora could manage.

On the screen, though fuzzy, it was clear that Harry's eyes were completely and utterly black.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

The Doctor – carrying a collapsed Emmy – and Rose made a slow progression through the Ward. With the Doctor's hands full, Rose took the role of scanning the area with the sonic using her free hand, searching for any kind of signal, from the TARDIS, the control room, anywhere. And then there it was, faint but still there.

"Doctor!" Rose exclaimed and still carrying Emmy in his arms, the Doctor and Rose followed the signal, unlocking doors with the sonic and making sure to lock and disable them behind them – they didn't want a crazed Xander following them and there was no need to double back on themselves now they had a direction to head in and the signal was growing with every step.

The signal path ended in E ward where the pulse remained but there was nothing there.

"Rose," the Doctor whispered, "stay close." Rose could tell by his voice that this was not good, as well as the obvious fact that there was no-one there. It was an empty room. Not even the patients had got out, the walls were as smooth as it was possible to be with cracks formed by the storms.

…

Not long earlier, the crew were still searching through the feeds for more of the strange figure but most of the CCTV was down and the few of the cameras left still working were badly damaged. Alanna was scrolling through images from the hull around the time of the 'storm'. She opened camera H65 and carefully scanned the display for anything abnormal, closed it and opened the next one. Still nothing. She cradled her head in her hands trying not to think about how long she'd been awake.

A beep came from the computer. She looked up and a small red cross was flashing in the upper corner. Curious, she selected the icon which brought up the medi-pack screen. The first aid kit in Rose's belt had been opened with a sling and a large medi-heal plaster removed. _Why did they need those?_ Alanna wondered, using the co-ordinates from the device to pinpoint when and where Rose had opened the kit. Then, her curiosity increasing, she searched all the available CCTV recordings from that area of the Ward. And there it was. Another large grey fuzz on the hull. It's entry through the metal was still forceful but not as strong as the last one, only causing shock in that area of the ship. She quickly showed all of this to the rest of the staff and they followed the fuzz once more. It turned into a corridor and Rose and Xander could be seen still re-cooperating from the effect of the storm. The smoke stopped and faded slightly but did not disappear. As Xander stood up from helping Rose with her sling he backed straight into it and what had happened to Harry Aldham was repeated. Only by the time Rose turned to face him, it was all over and he was making his way down the corridor.

"He's started to run," stated Doctor Hope.

"Why has he done that?" Doctor Mora moved closer to the screen trying to work out what was happening.

And then Xander pinned Rose to the wall. Everyone gasped in horror at what would happen next, but he let go and she fled. And that was all Alanna and Leon could muster from the recordings. The Doctor, Rose, Joseph, Xander and the two patients were still untraceable.

…

Back in E ward, the Doctor had laid Emmy down, using his coat to protect her from the roughened floor. He and Rose stayed close together, waiting for something to happen. There was a crackling sound, like the scrunching of a plastic bag and in the two opposite corners of the room, two figures fizzled into view. One was Xander, his large frame slumped and the other was the patient Rose had seen in the control room.

"He's a patient," Rose whispered to the Doctor almost inaudibly, "Harry something. He's dangerous Doctor, the doctors and the captain, they were terrified."

The Doctor nodded slowly but said nothing in reply. His eyes were fixed on the two men. They stared back with cold black eyes, emotionless. Every now and again they would flicker out of sight for a second then crackle back into existence.

"Hello," the Doctor said at last, "who are you two then? You're not who's bodies you're using, am I right?" The men didn't respond but Xander's head cocked slightly to the side.

"So you can hear me then. Who are you? Come on, you've got voices now."

If anything this seemed to irritate the men and they made a step forwards. Rose instinctively stepped away but the Doctor stood firm.

"I'm not afraid," he said, "and I need to know why you're here. I'm guessing it was you who caused the storm." He raised his eyebrows accusingly, "And people have died. Tell me who you are."

Screams erupted from the men, shrill and piercing. Then from their chests electrical bolts flew out across the ward sending electricity running through the walls and ceiling, encasing the room in a box of flashing light and sparks. The buzz was almost unbearable and Rose clamped her hands over her ears. By her feet, Emmy bolted awake, wide eyed and screaming.


End file.
